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Mazda releases driver and team lineups for Rolex 24

January 3, 2013

The team of Jonathan Bomarito, Marino Franchitti, James Hinchcliffe and Sylvain Tremblay will be back in the No. 70 Mazda for the Rolex 24. The team will be joined by new driver, Tom Long. Photo by LAT PHOTOGRAPHIC

Mazda Motorsports announced team and driver lineups for the 2013 Rolex 24 at Daytona on Friday, where the manufacturer will be seeking its 24th class win at the most famous endurance race in America. Mazda teams will be racing in an all-new Mazda6, powered by the all-new SkyActiv-D clean diesel engine, in the new Grand-Am GX class.

“We’re thrilled to be starting a new chapter of Mazda Motorsports history with the race debut of our all-new Mazda6 race car, powered by our all-new production based SkyActiv-D clean diesel engine. Our long-time engineering partner, SpeedSource, has led the technical development of the program in hand with Mazda engineers in Japan and the U.S.,” noted John Doonan, motorsports director, Mazda North American Operations. “SpeedSource will be joined in Daytona by Freedom Autosport and Visit Florida Racing/SpeedSource/Yellow Dragon Racing. Our driver lineups include a talented mix of young guns and veterans, all of whom are from the extended Mazda family.”

Visit Florida Racing/SpeedSource/Yellow Dragon #00: Joel Miller, Tristan Nunez, Spencer Pigot, Yojiro Terada, and Tristan Vautier. Terada is of course the veteran Mazda racer who has competed in more than two dozen 24 Hours of Le Mans races. The others are all racers who have won championships within the MazdaSpeed Motorsports Ladder and the Mazda Road to Indy.

Freedom Autosport #25: Andrew Carbonell, Tom Long, Rhett O’Doski, and Derek Whitis. Freedom Autosport has been a winning team in the Continental Tire Challenge with Mazda. They are moving up as a complete team.

The first of the cars will make its public debut at the Roar Before the 24 test session at the Daytona International Speedway this weekend.

The #70 car will also be at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

The Rolex 24 Hour race is Jan. 26-27. Teams and driver pairings for the complete 2013 Rolex GRAND-AM full-season will be announced at a later date.